Diabetes Research and Wellness Foundation

What Diabetes Research and Wellness Foundation does

Diabetes Research and Wellness Foundation (DRWF) is a UK-registered charity (Charity No. 1070607, Company No. 03496304) founded in 1998 and headquartered in Havant, Hampshire, with 21 employees. Its mission is to raise awareness of all types of diabetes, provide evidence-based self-management education, and fund clinical and scientific research aimed at finding a cure. The organisation serves people living with type 1 and type 2 diabetes, families and caregivers, and healthcare professionals, primarily across the UK but with claimed global reach through its digital resources and international research funding.

DRWF's core offerings comprise an open-access library of professionally authored information leaflets (delivered as PDF, audio, and hard copy), a Diabetes Wellness Network with over 7,000 members, the annual United Through Diabetes programme of webinars and in-person events, a Living with Diabetes podcast, family camps for young people with type 1 diabetes, and diabetes alert wristbands. It co-delivers the award-winning myDesmond online self-management tool in partnership with the Leicester Diabetes Centre and University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust. No proprietary technology platform is built; the technical layer is a content website, digital hub, and webinar infrastructure.

DRWF is funded through a diversified charity revenue model: regular and one-time donations (suggested monthly tiers of £3, £5, £10), fundraising events (running, cycling, skydiving, abseiling, quiz nights), corporate partnerships and event sponsorships (notably Dexcom and Embecta for the United Through Diabetes programme), legacy gifts, charitable trusts, a charity lottery, and corporate volunteering. All patient-facing content and services are provided free of charge. The organisation operates under a community-led, event-driven go-to-market model, distributing information through its website, in-person UK events, and virtual webinars accessible globally.

Name

Diabetes Research and Wellness Foundation

Legal name

Diabetes Research & Wellness Foundation

Website

https://drwf.org.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

1998

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Diabetes Research and Wellness Foundation is a UK charity, founded in 1998 and based in Havant, that funds diabetes research and provides free evidence-based education, wellness events, and community support to people living with diabetes and healthcare professionals.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Charitable Health Services

NAICS

Voluntary Health Organizations (813212), Grantmaking Foundations (813211)

SIC

Services-Misc Health & Allied Services, Nec (8090)

akta.pro primary industry

Health & Medical Research Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAL)

akta.pro secondary industries

Disease-Specific Research & Support (e.g., Cancer, Diabetes, ALS) (BPAGACAA), Global Health Financing Mechanisms & Pooled Funds (HLAJAOAC)

Keywords

• Diabetes research funding
• Patient education
• Diabetes wellness
• Peer support network
• Charitable healthcare

Headquarters

HQ city

Havant

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Donations: DRWF receives regular and one-time donations from individuals. Regular donation options include £3, £5, £10 monthly contributions. Single donations are also accepted.
2. Fundraising Events: DRWF organises and participates in fundraising activities including running events, abseiling, cycling challenges, skydiving, pub quizzes, and the Diabetes Dawdle sponsored walk.
3. Corporate Partnerships: Corporate organisations partner with DRWF for sponsorship of events and programmes, with companies like Dexcom and Embecta sponsoring the United Through Diabetes programme.
4. Legacies and Trusts: DRWF receives legacy gifts through wills and funding from charitable trusts as part of planned giving programmes.
5. Lottery: DRWF operates a lottery programme where participants can play to support the charity.
6. Corporate Volunteering: Companies engage staff in volunteering activities to support DRWF's mission.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

DRWF is a registered UK charity that delivers free evidence-based diabetes information leaflets, peer-support through the Diabetes Wellness Network (7,000+ members), and educational programmes such as United Through Diabetes, while funding clinical and scientific research at leading UK and international institutions. All consumer-facing resources are provided at no cost; funding comes from donations, fundraising events, corporate sponsorships, legacies, charitable trusts, and a charity lottery.

Product overview

Diabetes Research and Wellness Foundation (DRWF) is a UK-based charitable organization established in 1998 that provides diabetes education, community support, and research funding. The organization operates as a unified charitable foundation offering information leaflets (freely available PDFs and audio versions), the Diabetes Wellness Network membership community (7,000+ members), the annual United Through Diabetes programme with webinars and events, the myDesmond online self-management tool, a Living with Diabetes podcast, and diabetes alert wristbands. Rather than a traditional product platform, DRWF delivers its mission through educational resources, community engagement, wellness events, and research funding.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Diabetes Wellness Network: A growing community of subscribers with type 1 and type 2 diabetes or others with an interest in diabetes, providing support and information.
• United Through Diabetes

Products and services

• Information Leaflets

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 7,000 members in the Diabetes Wellness Network
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• DexcomcoreGTM or Marketing PartnerDexcom sponsored the United Through Diabetes programme, which is DRWF's major annual educational and wellness event series. Dexcom has spent 20 years innovating and developing continuous glucose monitoring technology for people with type 1 diabetes.
• EmbectacoreGTM or Marketing PartnerEmbecta sponsored the United Through Diabetes annual programme. Empowered by nearly 100 years of innovation and focused on improving the lives of people living with diabetes, Embecta is singularly focused on diabetes care.
• Leicester Diabetes Centre and University Hospitals of Leicester NHS TrustcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborated with DRWF to present the myDesmond webinar. The Leicester Diabetes Centre and NHS Trust developed the award-winning myDesmond online self-management tool for people with diabetes.
• Xyla Health and WellbeingminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnered with DRWF on the Type 2 & A Healthier You Webinar, bringing information about NHS programmes designed to support people living with, and those at risk of developing, type 2 diabetes.
• Association of Medical Research Charities (AMRC)coreOthersDRWF is a member of the AMRC, an organisation representing medical research charities in the UK. AMRC membership signifies adherence to high standards of governance and best practice in medical research funding.
• Patient Information Forum (PIF)coreOthersDRWF is a member of PIF, an independent not-for-profit organisation representing over 300 organisations across the NHS, voluntary, academic, freelance and commercial sectors. PIF membership signifies DRWF's commitment to producing high-quality, clearly communicated, evidence-based healthcare information.
• Revolve Comics Publishing CompanyminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborated with Dr Mayank Patel and Professor Partha Kar to create award-winning comic book series about diabetes-beating superheroes, helping young people understand type 1 diabetes through engaging content.
• Diabetes Professional CarecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDRWF and Diabetes Professional Care have a long-standing relationship working together on conferences and events for diabetes healthcare professionals. The partnership supports education and networking for diabetes specialists.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• American Diabetes Association: Major US diabetes research, education, and advocacy charity with national reach and significant research grantmaking. Broad incumbent — comparable in research-funding and patient-education mission, but operates at much larger scale and primarily in the US market.
• International Diabetes Federation: Global umbrella organisation for diabetes associations worldwide, with a remit to influence policy, drive awareness, and convene research. Broad incumbent — overlaps with DRWF on global awareness and research advocacy, but operates at supranational rather than country level.
• Breakthrough T1D (formerly JDRF International): Global type 1 diabetes research charity, significantly larger than JDRF UK. Broad incumbent — overlaps with DRWF on T1D research funding and patient-community programming, but operates globally with substantially more resources.

Direct peers

• Diabetes UK: The UK's largest diabetes charity, funding research and supporting people with all types of diabetes. Direct peer — both organisations compete for the same donor, corporate sponsor, and NHS partnership pools in UK diabetes fundraising.
• JDRF UK: UK arm of the leading type 1 diabetes research charity, focused on funding research to cure, prevent, and treat T1D. Direct peer — competes for T1D-specific research funding, corporate sponsorship from device makers, and engaged-patient community programming.
• Diabetes Research Institute Foundation: US-based charity funding the Diabetes Research Institute focused on a cure for diabetes. Direct peer — closely comparable research-grantmaking mission and donor proposition around cure-focused research.

Regional players

• Diabetes Canada: National diabetes charity in Canada funding research and supporting patients. Regional peer — directly comparable research-funding, patient-education, and community-event model, but operating in a different national market.
• Diabetes Ireland: National diabetes charity in Ireland providing support, education, and research funding. Regional peer — closely comparable in scope and scale to DRWF, but focused on the Irish market rather than the UK.

Emerging players

• Beyond Type 1: US-based digital-first nonprofit focused on education, advocacy, and community for people living with type 1 diabetes. Emerging player — comparable community-and-digital-content approach, but younger and more digital-native than DRWF.
• T1 International: Type 1 diabetes advocacy and patient-empowerment nonprofit with strong digital and grassroots focus. Emerging player — overlaps with DRWF on patient-empowerment and education, but with a sharper advocacy and access-to-insulin mission.

Market position

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/diabetes-research-and-wellness-foundation

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Diabetes Research and Wellness Foundation